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Banco do Brasil (BB) is expected to save about R$ 90 million between 2000 and 2010 by adopting free software programs. The estimate was presented by free information systems expert Ulisses de Sousa Penna, responsible by the bank's Technology department.

Ulisses de Sousa Penna, responsible by the bank's Technology department

Creator of BB's Home Banking System, this Thursday, 30th, the researcher gave the official opening speech at the 5th Latin American Conference on Free Software – Latinoware 2008, in Foz do Iguaçu. The forecast made by the scientist shows the savings obtained by the bank through the use of free tools and solutions like Linux, Solaris and the Open Office, a version of the Microsoft Office, among other programs.

The savings derive from decreased expenses with annual license payments on the use of IT applications and regular program maintenance, not to mention the need to frequently update the technological tools used by the company.

At the lecture, Ulisses Penna showed the entire evolution of the process carried out by Banco do Brasil to implement open software systems since 2000, when the bank adopted the first model, Proxy Linux, to control internet access.

Today, over 60% of the programs used by Banco do Brasil are Linux, open source code software. “We want to use 100% free software in our operations within the next few decades by following our strategic planning”, he added.

The magnitude of the project includes BB's 65,000 workstations and 5,500 computer servers spread across more than 40,000 service terminals in every Brazilian state.

Latinoware 2008 is an initiative by Itaipu Binacional in collaboration with the PTI Foundation, the Paraná IT Company(Celepar), and the Brazilian Data Processing Service (Serpro).